News blog for Seattle's Maple Leaf neighborhood

Arrests made in threatening robbery near Northgate Mall

Posted by Mike on January 7th, 2014

Seattle Police this morning announced the arrests of two men in connection with a robbery near Northgate Mall that occurred on Boxing Day – Dec. 26th.

At about 2:30 p.m., the victim was walking near the mall when he was confronted by three acquaintances. They engaged in a conversation when one of the men asked the victim if he could try on his Ralph Lauren down vest.

The victim told him no, and the suspect pushed him against a wall and held him there. He ordered him to take off the vest and then motioned toward his waistband, as if he was reaching for a gun. The suspects removed the victim’s vest and distinctive Gucci belt and then fled in a car.

Robbery detectives were assigned the case and distributed a wanted bulletin for the suspects. Yesterday, just before noon, a Shoreline Police Department officer located and arrested one of the suspects near Northeast 174th Street and 15th Avenue Northeast, just north of the city limits.

During his arrest, the officer located a loaded .380 caliber semi-auto handgun in the suspect’s waistband. The handgun had been stolen in a 2012 residential robbery that happened in King County. The suspect was wearing the victim’s Gucci belt taken in the robbery.

Officers arrested the man and his brother, ages 19 and 20. The third suspect is still at large.

The original police report states the robbery occurred in the 400 block of Northeast Northgate Way, along the north side of the mall. It says the robbers got away in an old Toyota, driven by a fourth suspect.

46 reader comments so far ↓

Just when he was turning his life around. These poor youth just want the things in life that McDonalds wont provide. 15 dollar an hour minimum wage should help reduce this kind of crime. I hope he gets a Gucci belt to hold his soap while he is in jail if he goes.

You can’t be serious??!! A $15 hour minimum wage will do nothing for these types of crimes. These punks don’t want to work regardless of the pay. They want the easy route and to take from people who actually work for a living.

Plus, all a $15 an hour minimum wage will do is drive McDonalds and other such employers to further push robots. A fast food restaurant could be completely automated and it will happen sooner or later. Sooner if they have to pay $15/hour for someone to squirt ketchup on a bun.

@BDon. I get you! Good one. Poor saps te he. Please know, however, that if *I* were to be so fortunate to be paid $15 per hour; I’d actually spend it to support myself rather than using a good chunk of credit every month to personally subsidize the wages I’m paid in another of many service industries that just cannot afford to pay me a livable wage. There are plenty of us older folks as well who have lost decent paying jobs, served caring for family members, etc., who now stand little chance of replacing those jobs. Boo Hoo! Poor us, eh? @MLBob Lets automate you!

Regardless if people agree or its the approach that fosters warm and fuzzy feelings, its going to be the reality. McDonalds is not meant to be a career. Its typically a transition job. Flipping burgers will Never be a career that brings a comfortable living wage. It is what it is, so people need to face reality and approach things in that manner. Whether its focus more on education and skills training, etc… But trying to force a high wage for a low end job that does not warrant it will never work regardless if you or me or anyone “feels” that it should. Efforts are better directed at other methods for improving opportunities.

Seriously? All raising the minimum wage will do is to INCREASE the cost of goods and services to the very people that are getting minimum wage. McDonalds was NEVER intended to be full time employment for family wages. Go to school learn a trade, get an education. There are MANY programs (especially in this socialist state), to help poor folks get an education to better themselves. Seattle Community Colleges have “Start Next Quarter”. It costs you nothing.As for those criminals, expect more of it once strangers start flowing in from the light rail, Northgate Mall expansion ( because of light rail, and the influx of new customers),and growth of the Northgate/Maple Leaf area.

Maybe the socialists will get their way and the excessive minimum wage will thin the crowd at the bottom due to a destroyed economy. good God who will be left to serve the coffee, clean the offices, care for the children, elders, pets? Or to paint your house, replace your roof mow your lawn?let’s hope there’s enough students around her still living off of Mama and Daddy hear that evil government the rest of the so probably be taken the rail out of town but that’s good because obv you are taking the rail out to Northgate they won’t be able to afford it maybe it’s not such a bad thing after all eh

Since the conversation turned to minimum wage I want to chime in. Back in the day it was said that a woman in the work force was never meant to have a living wage. It just enabled her to buy more shoes or whatever. We still haven’t worked our way out of that notion and many still pay us less for the same work as a man.
Not that long ago there was talk of paying young folks that work at jobs like McDonalds even LESS than minimum wage with similar logic. Its just gas money for them. Looking at what college costs these days that also is a huge misconception.
It is necessary to have two incomes anymore so service is more and more sought out because who has the time. I think everyone deserves a living wage. This is the world we live in now.

I’m glad they caught the robbers! This is awesome! But if the City Council raises the minimum wage above what espresso places and restaurants can afford to pay, these businesses will go under. And there will be more robbers and burglars and car thieves out on our streets.

If you hate unemployment, tell the City Council to vote no on the increased minimum wage.

Well said Thomas.It is frustrating that the folks most in favor of making the minimum wage $15 an hour have no knowledge of simple economics. Do you really believe that business owners will bare the brunt of a massive jump in costs like that? Of course not.Goods and services will go up in price. Those costs will be passed on to the consumer, leaving the citizens in worse shape than before. As far as colleges, trade schools go.., there are many retraining opportunities available to low income folks. If you dispute this, you haven`t looked. You don`t necessarliy need a four year degree to better you situation. Many community colleges offer 3 month programs, one year certificates, two year associate degrees, etc. I am a prime example of this. I was in construction making great money until the economic downturn of 2008. I went back to school at a 2 year community college. I qualified for one of hundreds of programs to help people retrain. There are many programs for many different situations. If you deny this then you are simply too lazy to look, or to better yourself. Opportunities are there if you look.Go to Work Source, or South Seattle Community College`s worker retraining department ( ask for Kathleen). I`m telling you that if you get off your ass you can change your life. It`s up to you.

When the recession and housing issues hit several years back, there was a huge influx of people trying to find work. Many of them turned to vocational training to learn new skills to improve their chances.

That just created more unemployed workers in debt as there were too many people for so few employment positions. But Rob is right. You don’t even need to go to law school in order to practice in a limited capacity in our state.

Weft, the topic is related. Someone inferred that if the minimum wage was raised,there would be less crime. Horsecrap! Then, it was said that education, and job training to change your lot in life was out of reach. Again, Horsecrap! Then, Abigail said that getting job skills was contributing to the unemployment base. Also, Horsecrap! There will be over one million aviation tech jobs alone, available worldwide, within the next few years. That`s just aviation. Sometimes, when I read this blog; it just looks like a bunch of losers feeling sorry for themselves, that want everyone else to do something for them to make it all better. You are responsible for doing that for yourself.

I work full time in an albeit lower wage job but dammit – I AM WORKING and NOT asking for handouts – no programs, food stamps, worker re-training, tax breaks, loop holes, etc. Good for you if your program payed off Bob. I’ll follow up on the aviation tech lead today. You never know. Boeing hires older folk, I hear. Many of those re-training programs, however are a big waste of tax payer money IMHO and often working folks do not qualify because we are*not* sucking off the government tit and our wages, however low, are still too much. Whine, whine, whine!

Nan, Just F.Y.I. There is a 2 quarter composites technology program at South Seattle Community College. The graduates are being hired by Boeing at a starting wage of $28 an hour with generous benefits. BMW also is hiring the graduates. They are making automobiles more and more out of composites for gas mileage. Many vendors to Boeing and Airbus are hiring these graduates. There is a 2 quarter welding program at SSCC, as well. Hell, there is even a wine making and sommelier program there.A sommelier makes an average of $51, 400 per year. You don`t need to stay struggling from paycheck to paycheck. But, you would have to change your attitude, and realize that you are in control of your life, not everyone else.As far as any of these programs go; you have paid taxes for many years. That means that you have paid into these programs. Why not help yourself get ahead. It is in virtually everyone`s best intrest that you earn more money and contribute more to the tax base, the consumption of goods and services, and the overall health of the economy. They are not handouts.

I figure a job at any wage will keep me out of trouble, but $15 is barely enough to keep from circling the drain given the rapid rise in living expenses over the last decade or so.

150 applications and no responses leave me a bit glum. I am so pleased the EUC has been discontinued, it will surely open up a position for me somewhere although I can’t connect that logic and the reality facing me.

Maybe I could boost a .380 and become “self employed”. I do need a belt since I have not be able to afford much in the way of groceries.

The economy is still broken. Be glad your are working, if you are. The bell may toll for thee soon.

I feel for kids just getting out of college with big loans to repay, or just your regular HS grad without two pennies to rub together.

Oh my God, I am done with this blog. There are too many losers that don’t take responsibility for their own lives, don’t want to do the hard work necessary to better themselves, and just want to whine. These people just want something for nothing. And that is what they will have all their lives is nothing.

I think it is wonderful to go back to school for a new vocation. As far as Boeing goes though just did a little fact check. I found 3 mechanic jobs listed for Washington state. Not news either that we were inches away from losing many of the existing jobs in that area due to labor disputes. My husband works for Boeing and they are very generous. He also started with an A&P licensed and worked up to a white collar job. It can be a real roller coaster with Boeing, just saying.

Sue, the composites jobs are often apprenticeships. They last 4 years.You start at $28 an hour and go up. You get to your maximum pay rate 2 years ahead of regular mechanics. regardless of what you saw on Boeing`s “external” website most everyone that goes through the composites program has a good job waiting for them. I have worked for Boeing twice, in the past so I know what I am talking about.You don`t have to work for Boeing. Read my posts, again. I have said that the only person keeping you working at a minimum wage job, is yourself. DON`T BLAME EVERYONE ELSE!!! Virtually every post from you is some kind of combative nonsense in which you rarely know what you are talking about.

There is no statistical correlation between raising the minimum wage and unemployment rates going up. Some people here are a little too stuck on Conservative talking points and having done the research. A $15 minimum would raise more people out of poverty, which does have a discernible effect on crime… there’s less crime when less people live below the poverty level. Also there would be less dependence on government and community services, there’s a lot of people working for minimum wage that cost us tax money because they make so little they qualify for government support programs and rely on things like food banks to survive. Wages go up and state and federal government expenditures go down. The government should not be subsidizing people’s wages, their employers should be paying them more and we should be paying more for goods and services where needed.

AND…, once again, do you really think that business owners are going to absorb a huge increase in costs if the minimum wage goes up?THOSE COSTS GET PASSED ON TO THE CONSUMER!
There are economists going crazy telling us this. Dan, do you live in a hole?

There in lies the problem. What is really killing the marketplace is not just greedy companies and a lack of regulation. It’s a huge lack of consumers wanting to be responsible for who they support and taking the time to make informed buying decisions. Instead they just want the government to force actions. People will not take the time to buy local products at a higher price. They buy cheap crap made in China. Why do think even with all the bad press and negative attitudes towards Walmart, their profits and sales volume increase? If consumers did their job and stopped buying cheap crap made in China, the suppliers/stores would adjust to meet the consumers demand. The reality is that people are lazy and not willing to take responsibility for their own buying decisions. It’s no different than the obese person blaming McDonald’s. The fast food company didn’t forcefully take their money and then shove unhealthy food in their face. They did it themselves, but want to push the blame elsewhere.

Simply saying that paying people more will solve the problem is a bit narrow minded IMHO.

MapleleafBob, That is a really good point. However, even when you “want” to buy American, it is difficult. Think about American automobiles, for instance; the wire harness may be made in Indonesia, the tires in Japan, the steel from Korea, etc…., So, do we simply buy things assembled in America? Doesn`t that still promote the idea of companies outsourcing to foreign countries by increasing their bottom line, and encouraging such behavior? Democrats have promoted free trade zones that really only go one way; out of the country. Think Bill Clinton. Certainly protectionism isn`t the answer either, but to simply give out the keys to the kingdom are worse.

Forbes does indeed have a great article http://www.forbes.com/sites/francescoppola/2014/01/13/why-we-need-a-minimum-wage/
Thanks for the suggestion Rob. I asked for unemployment benefits twice in my lifetime. First time I had a graduate degree and trouble finding work. So the systems asks, well what else have you/can you do. I made the mistake of saying I had worked in a tavern for a short time. Immediately they send me to a bar in pioneer square where my only responsibility would have been to drink beer and make nice with the customers. I was offered the job in a heartbeat. Hell no, says I. Guess you know what happened next. I really appreciated this article

You should also read the article I suggested in BusinessWeek. It states that there WILL be job losses because of razor thin profit margins in businesses (especially fast food), where minimum wage workers are mostly found. Thate article (and many more like it), point out that fewer workers will be forced to do more work, and that there is a point where automation becomes viable economically, and can be predicted. But, it sounds like you just want to read things that back up your belief system, rather than coming to an informed opinion

Rob, totally agree with your last post that there will be job loss if wage is increase too much. This will be especially hard on youth and the unskilled. It boils down to supply and demand. Again I really liked the Forbes article.

Okay, sorry. It sounded like you were being antagonistic. I just don`t want to see someone have a bunch of people discourage them from going to school (in whatever capacity), to better themselves, with the illusion that all they need is a raise in the minimum wage.That is a vicious circle.Not something I would encourage my kid to do. Yes, going to school, and working, and studying, perhaps finding childcare, is hard.But, worth it. And, ultimately, getting job skills are the only way to change one`s course.A high school diploma isn`t going to get you there. It will help get you into college, but that`s about it. Today, you need specific, and specialized skills from some sort of post high school training.And, there are many different programs one can use as a vehicle to get you there.

Rob – I’m glad you’re keeping with the discussion. Those of us who understand that the free market creates prosperity have to stick together. By the way – I’m your old neighbor who appreciated your help with our mutual difficult neighbor. Drop me an email sometime and I’ll buy you a drink, OK?